Court Staff
How can a court clerk help me?
We are happy to help you if we can. However, we can do so only in certain way, since we must be fair to everyone.
This is a list of some things the court staff can and cannot do for you.
Answering Questions
- We can explain and answer questions about how the court works.
- We cannot tell you whether or not you should bring your case to court.
Paper Work & Legal Information
- We can provide you with the number of the local lawyer referral service, legal services program, family law facilitator program, and other service where you can get legal information.
- We can check your papers for completeness - signatures, notarization, county name, case numbers, attachments.
- We cannot tell you what words to use in your court papers.
Court Procedures
- We can give you general information about court rules, procedures, and practices.
- We cannot tell you what to say in court.
Your Case
- We can provide court schedules and information on how to get a case scheduled.
- We cannot give an opinion about what will happen if you bring your case to court.
Case Information
- We can provide you information from your case file, provide you with court forms and available instructions, and answer questions about court deadlines.
- We cannot talk to the judge for you, let you talk to a judge outside of court, or change an order signed by a judge.
We have been instructed not to answer questions if we do not know the correct answers, since court staff may not know the answers to all questions and because we don't want to give you wrong information, .
For additional information, please contact a lawyer or your local law library, or check the California Courts Self-Help Center.